Automation for Autism

Sacramento, CA

Mark Buzzard, a Control4 dealer, has had his fair share of experience with home automation. But it wasn’t until a personal challenge presented itself that he quickly realized just what Control4 was truly capable of.

Mark’s three-and-a-half year old son, Brody, was born with autism as well as apraxia, a speech disorder that makes it difficult for him to articulate what he wants. Consistency in his schedule is vital to his routine and quick changes to that routine can trigger what the family calls “meltdowns.” To help alleviate these meltdowns, Mark created preprogrammed scenes to allow Brody’s day to start the same way each morning. He activated the Control4 feature Wakeup Agent, which programs things such as lighting and music to turn on at certain times. Now, at exactly the same time every day, Brody is gently roused by his favorite cartoon, Thomas the Train.

Likewise, Brody can fall asleep to his favorite TV shows. Mark has it set up so that he can remotely turn off the television and the lights in his son's room so it's not necessary to enter and exit his room. Additionally, Mark set up the Control4 system to run playlists in the therapy room so his therapist can interact with Brody through his favorite music and songs.

For parents of any toddler, the thought of them sneaking out at night provides an immense fear. After Brody’s attempted to do just that, Mark set the Control4 system up with security features—including time parameters, motion sensors and speakers in every room. He also integrated an IP camera in Brody's room, so that he and his wife could monitor Brody's playtime and therapy sessions. Now, if Brody tries to sneak out of his room or the house, Control4 sends text alerts to his parents, and activates a whole-house audio announcement: "Brody has left the building!"

Months later, the Buzzard family still has it all under perfect control. "I know Brody is going to grow up to just be so smart," says Mark. "Whether he's an artist or a Google programmer, he's going to be an amazing adult. And as our child, he's already a perfectly amazing gift just the way he is."